we couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day. (43 degrees outside) NO snow no freezing rain no sleet (as we had been seeing for weeks) and the water temp was 45 degrees.
the energy of the crowd was really something. i knew i’d be nervous, but i was downright giddy. i just couldn’t believe i was going to do it. i was going to submerge my entire body into that cold cold ocean. hell yeah!
it’s weird what you remember from events. not the music, but the visuals of everyone around us. at one point everyone started jumping up and down, warming their cold feet on cold sand and i felt like a kid surrounded by other kids. the energy was contagious and happy and so so good. the visuals came in slow motion, people dancing and laughing with no sound. adrenaline is such a trip.
then the countdown. the hard part was running and running towards that vast sea. the tide was WAY out. i was giddy the whole time, smiling with wind in my teeth, smiling big just feeling like a kid running forever into dreamspace.
then reaching the ocean and running into it… it felt so strange on my legs, intense cold and slow motion running in and under and not even remembering anything but seeing other people’s faces coming out of the water. i came up out of the cold, it was SO FUCKING COLD, it took my breath and my ribs hurt from breathing in the cold. what i remember the most was when i came up out of the water (head wet) i was surprised by SALT. right? it’s the fucking ocean. it’s salt water. but i was so taken by the salt. it tasted so good. felt so good on my skin.
overall it rocked. i was energized and warmed from the inside. the entire experience was more than what i thought it would be. wow.
view it on youtube and watch kristin’s slideshow for her perspective as well.
thank you thank you for all your support, comments, and best wishes for me as i took this plunge into 2012.
xo meredith
so fucking cold. LOL amen!
happy new year
you brave dipper you!
you DID IT!
you really really did it!
XOXO
You inspired me to do the Polar Plunge here in Oregon. I saw a posting on your blog, and also on Kristin’s. On new years eve I got a call from a friend who said she was going to do the PP here and I knew all points were heading me to the sea that day.
I didn’t make it in time to do the group plunge but I did a solo one. I couldn’t not do it. Thanks for the inspiration.
i love this, i love what you did, what you experienced, and so very awesome. love you ~ you totally and utterly rock my lady!
xxx
So incredible. Congrats to you and Kristin! Love the video
xo
So wonderful you did it! I love your photos (as usual) and you’ve described it so well. Thanks for inspiring me to dip into the Pacific on our tiny island. What an amazing way to begin the year. Looks like we had the exact same weather, except a bit more blustery here. Happy New Year!
love that smiling face. ooooh boy, so brave.
I can feel the excitement and energy in your writing. So much fun!!! What a way to begin a new year!!!
This is the first post I’ve ever read here, I love it. I found you on flickr…. I remember being 12 and swimming in the Maine ocean sometime in September with my younger brother. We emerged, red like lobsters, and I remember just standing there with my body feeling so numb. I didn’t need a towel wrapped around me to warm up, I was just numb, and the wind on my body was the most amazing sensation. It is still a very vivid memory. I loved that day. I hope this day made you feel like that!
Awesome picts! Thanks for taking us with you!
This is so SO good. So glad that it was more than you’d imagined. I loathe cold water, but this makes me kind of want to do that crazy thing!
Happy happy new year.
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